Ask the Studio!

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(KHolt @ Jan 4 2008, 12:56 PM)
Hello,
What P3 paints would you recommend for differant hair colors?
Brunette?
Blonde?
Strawberry Blonde?
Jet Black?
Redhead?
Ginger Redhead?

Thanks!

Wow thats a tall order... there are a infinite variety of hair colors and I really don't have fomulas for them in my head since I prefer to just mix them to match the individual so for each hair color I'll list some colors I might use and with some experimenting you should be able to find a mix that looks good to you.

Brunette: Battlefield brown, bootstrap leather, and beasthide
Blonde: Moldy ochre, rucksack tan, Gun Corp brown. Try to stay away from bright yellows when painting blondes since it looks unrealistic.
Strawberry Blonde: Use the previous list of colors with khador red highlight, khardic flesh, or midlund flesh added in Ryn flesh may be useful as well for doing highlights
Jet Black: Thamar black, coal black, as well as one these colors mixed in for highlighting...hammerfall khaki, menoth white highlight, or underbelly blue. You'll also need menoth white highlight to add in for the final highlights.
Redhead: Khador red highlight, ember orange, bloodtracker brown, bloodstone, umbral umber
Ginger Redhead: As above except with sanguine base, skorne red, and heartfire used to make more vibrant colors also for some glazes of red and yellow inks can help get really firery colors.

You should also have menoth white base and highlight handy to mix in for you highlights on most of these hair colors. Hopefully some time in the future I'll get the time to put together a good article on the techniques used to paint hair since it can be a sticky subject for many painters to master.

thanks for all your questions guys and gals keep 'em coming.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(legionaires @ Dec 26 2007, 03:38 PM)
I was looking at my Drake and Kreas the other day and noting the similarity between them and the Rhinodon's skin colors on the PP paint scheme. What colors are those? I have searched but the only threads, but all that I have seen on the Basilisks have been other people's schemes and I honestly prefer the PP ones. I need to know what colors they are so I can get the store to order the P3's that Im missing. I'm just trying to get a head start on ordering the colors I need for the Rhinodon also as one order is easier than two and I want to start on my Basilisks ASAP after the holidays. Thanks guys!

Hello,

Been out of the country for a bit and just got back to this thread. Sorry for the delayed response. The skin on the Rhinodon is really made up of two sets of colors, one for the darker shoulder, arm and leg areas and one for the lighter belly area. Here is what was used to achive the final look of "greenish-grey" skin (these are just the colors used on the skin, not the spines).

When I paint multi-tonal skin like this I'll base coat all the skin at once, blending the darker and lighter areas together. This way I can paint my washes across the transition areas between light and dark making it look much more natural.

Darker areas -
1 - Basecoat with Cryx bane highlight.
2 - Wash this with Thornwood green + Matte Medium, focusing on the deepest parts.
3 - Wash just the deepest areas with a 2:1:2 mix of Cryx bane base : Sanguine base : Matte Medium.
4 - Highlight by adding Thrall flesh to Cryx bane highlight. Add some Morrow white to the mix for final highlights.

Lighter areas -
1 - Basecoat with jack bone.
2 - Wash this with bootstrap leather + Matte Medium
3 - Add some Cryx bane base and Sanguine base to the above mix and wash only the deepest areas.
4 - Highlight by adding Menoth white highlight to jackbone.

Skin spots-
1:1 mix of Cryx bane base : Umbral umber

Enjoy,

Quentin

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(swisherteets @ Nov 26 2007, 05:24 PM)
though its like 4 months till Mortenebra comes out I am going to paint my scrappy's and Necrotechs to go along with her and was curious as to some of the paints used on her. Were the most of the metals pig iron? and her cape and Deryliss' cape and skin colors I am really curious about too as its a real nice lookig undead skin i wanna use on other units and so on

Hello,

Mortenebra... Wait until you see her in person, she really is a wonderful model!

As for the colors on her cloak.. I'll tell you what I used but be warned that it is quite different (better ) from how it looks on the web (colors shifted quite a bit in the photos.) The following colors will produce a H.R. Giger type black..

1 - Base coat the cloak in a 3:2 mix of Cryx bane base : Coal Black
2 - Shade with Thamar Black
3 - Highlight by adding small amount of Menoth white base to the mixture used in step 1
4 - For final Highlight add Menoth white highlight to the above mix, use very sparingly.

I didn't write down the colors I used on the skin.... ungh. Must have been in a hurry. I'm guessing it was done in a similar fashion to the skin on nyss models which should be written up somewhere else in this thread. sorry.

Good luck. Let me know how it turns out.

- Quentin

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(FullFrontalRmann @ Jan 12 2008, 03:13 PM)
Here is a question:

In many of the BrushThralls articles they mention "feathering". When I researched the technique I came up with about 3 different ways to do it. What is the exact technique that they use?

This is a problem that you sometimes run into in the art world where two different techniques have the same name

I know two meanings in the miniature world for the term feathering. One has to do with two brush and wet blending. In this case it is when a second brush wet with blending medium is used to pull the still wet paint out over the model. It is called feathering because before the paint is fully blended you can see a series of soft parallel lines. In wet blending the a second brush is used to pull paint from two globs of wet paint and mix them in the center in the middle of this process the same feathery lines can be seen.

Whenever we use the term in one of the Painting Studio Style articles we mean a technique that is a bit different. When we say feathering we mean to apply layers of highlights in thin parallel lines. Around the office Game Developer Rob Stoddard is the King of feathering. His Khador army is something to behold.

As far as studio models go th best example of this technique is the Legion Raek

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(Keltheos @ Jan 14 2008, 09:09 AM)
In the Pirates book there's a picture of the Press Gang moving in on some 'volunteers'. I see you have coiled rope in the image. How did you get it to coil/glued down?

Knowing Alfonso I bet he wrapped the rope around a peg or tube. In this case our "rope" is in fact cotton string. Use super glue to attach the string to the base of the peg and the wind it around the peg in a loose and pleasing way then ut and attach the opposing end with super glue. Then soak the string in white or PVA glue mixed with lots of water. Cotton string works best because it soaks up lots of liquid.

Thanks for your questions!

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(atacam @ Jan 24 2008, 09:52 AM)
I have got to ask.

How was the pillar done on the new Trollkin Caber Thrower?
It looks so realistic.

Please let me know.


The Caber was a fun little expiriment of mine that I think paid off handsomely.
I started with a base coated of TBH and gave it a few veins of bloodtracker brown. The veins were faded using the two-brush method. Then I used a special spatter technique to apply the black speckles that give the caber its cool texture. Many people prefer the old toothbrush spatter method but I've found the results of this method to be very inaccurate and messy as well as yielding a less random spatter pattern. Instead I take my paint (in this case Thamar black) with a little water added on a medium sized brush (I use a size 1) position the brush about half a inch from the model and blow forcefully on the brush to spatter the paint. Make sure to not over load your brush and have a second damp brush handy to clean up any over spatter. I suggest testing this technique out a bit before applying it to your figs because it requires some finesse but it is really great for blood spatter like on the incubi or mud spatter like on the tharn shaman. Now back to our caber thrower, after the Thamar black spatter the caber was shaded with a mix of CXB and a dot of thamar black mixed in with a lot of mixing medium added for translucency. The cracks were picked out with thamar black and then highlights were applied with a mixture of TBH and MWH with lots of mixing medium again being added for translucency. The cracks were also edge highlighted with the same mixture with out the mixing medium. The translucency is important so that the veins and spatter are buried but not obsured by the shading and highlights. Hope that sheds some light on things and wasn't too confusing

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(Shroud @ Jan 31 2008, 05:40 PM)
How did you paint the Wither shadow combine? they are awesome and I'd love to know the colors used - basically so I can extend them into painting up a small cryx force!

Thanks for the compliments.

These models are really detailed, the sculptor did a fantastic job.

Here are the colors used. (all shading is done with the 2 brush (size 2 applicator and 3 blender brush) method with each progressive shade covering a smaller "deeper" area of the figure, highlights are minimal and done with thin strokes and small brushes along the sharpest edges and folds)

Dark Cloaks-
Base with a mix of - 3 parts Bastion Gray, 2 parts underbelly blue, 1 part Trollblood base
Shade 1 - Greatcoat Gray
Shade 2 - Coal Black
Shade 3 - Black
Highlight with the original base mix
Final Highlights with Tollblood Highlight

Red/brown Cloaks-
Base with - Hammerfall khaki
Shade 1 - Traitor Green
Shade 2 - Bootstrap leather
Shade 3 - Bloodstone
Shade 4 - Thornwood green
Shade 5 - Umbral Umber
Shade 6 - 1 part Umbral Umber, 2 parts Beaten Purple, 1 part Thamar Black
Highlight with Hammerfall Khaki
Final Highlights with Hammerfall + Menoth White Highlight

Metal areas-
Base with - 1 part Pig Iron, 1 part Cold Steel
Shade 1 - Cryx Bane Base (make sure you leave some of the base coat showing!)
Shade 2 - Thamar Black
Highlight with Cold steel
Final Highlights with QuickSilver

Blighted Gold areas-
Base with - Blighted Gold
Shade 1 - Umbral Umber
Shade 2 - 1 part Umbral Umber, 1 part Thamar Black
Highlight - Blighted Gold + Quicksilver in increasing amounts

Bone-
Base in - Menoth white Highlight
Shade 1 - Jack Bone
Shade 2 - Bastion Grey
Highlight with Menoth white Highlight
Final Highlights with Morrow white

Glow
Base Glowing parts - Menoth White Highlight
Wash with a mix of green and yellow ink + water (make it the same color as necrotite green)
This can spill over onto surrounding areas to create "glow."

Hope this helps.

- Q

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

I really love the job you guys did on Aiyana and Holt. With the popularity of these models im really surprised someone hasnt asked about the colors and techniques youve used

Any tips and insight for us mere mortals for this awesome duo?

Thanks,

Aiyana is one of the paintjobs I'm most proud of. She has a load of colors so I'll give you basics...

Cloak (dark areas)
Base in - Khador Red Base + Umbral Umber + Sanguine Base (this should be a nice deep maroon)
Shade 1 - Add Coal black to above mix
Shade 2 - Add Thamar black to above mix
Highlight - Khador Red Base + Umbral Umber
Additional Highlights - Add Ryn Flesh to the above mix in increasing amounts
Glaze with very thin passes of P3 brown ink and P3 red ink, this should make the color nice and rich.

Cloak (red areas)
Base in - Khador Red Base + Umbral Umber
Highlight up to Khador red Base then add go up to a mix of Khador red HL + Ryn Flesh
Glaze with thin passes of Red ink

Hair
Base in -Menoth white HL
Wash - 1 part frostbite, 1 part trollblood HL plus dot of coal black
Highlight with - Morrow White

Stockings
Base in - Trollblood HL
Shade by adding Coal Black and dot of Sanguine Base.
Highlight with - Menoth White HL

Silk Sleeves
Base with - Trollblood HL + Carnal Pink
Shade by adding Sanguine Base
Highlight by adding Carnal Pink and Morrow White to Base color

Skin
Base with Ryn Flesh
Shade with all the darker Flesh tones
Highlight with Ryn + Menoth White HL all the way up MWHL
Beaten Purple + Magenta for eye make-up
Blush = midlund flesh + dot of sanguine base

Holt was painted for a tight deadline so unfortunately I didn't write his colors down. Sorry.

Enjoy

- Q

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(Cervantes690 @ Feb 3 2008, 06:38 PM)
When you all say 3 parts of such paint, how do you measure out the part? I know silly question, but it is one I can't get my head around. And I have work for a sign company for 16 years now. I need to be shot.

It's all very rough. Color mixing is done by eye and it's a great skill to practice and learn. If I say "basecoat with 3 parts red, 1 part white," I mean just that. A "part" is any equal measurement, in this case a brushfull. So this mix would be 3 brushfulls (don't think that's a word ) of red paint mixed with one brushfull of white.

Once you get the hang of color mixing you can adjust your "custom" colors accordingly. Maybe the above mix is still too red?? Just add a bit more white.

Have fun with it. There are a ton of ways to mix colors, none are the "right way"

- Q

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(RussianKnight @ Feb 3 2008, 04:30 PM)
Could you please describe your technique for Holt's face specifically the colors and technique for his 5 o'clock shadow. That looks phenominal

Hello,

Holts skin..

basecoat - midlund flesh + dot of guncorps brown (this makes the skin less pink, I usually add this to all male skintones)
shade 1 - khardic flesh + dot of guncorps brown
shade 2 - above mix + dot of sanguine base & dot of exile blue (this is very subtle goes into ONLY the deepest shadows)
highlight 1 - basecoat (reclaim any areas that might have gotten too dark with the shading)
highlight 2 - basecoat + dot of ryn flesh and dot of menoth white highlight (keep adding more of each color and doing more highlights
on smaller and smaller areas of the skin)


stubble - mix the above skin basecoat color with a dot of greatcoat grey (this color will look nasty ) Thin this mix down a lot with water. It's way better to use multiple washes then to cover up too much with thick paint. Carefully apply the color over the area of the face that would be covered in stubble. Your mix should be thin enough that all the shading and highlighting underneath still show through. You may need to apply the wash a couple times to get it right (may need to add more or less gray.)

Keep on truckin..

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(tonyzahn @ Feb 4 2008, 07:09 AM)

How the heck do you paint metals like that? Metallics are the next area I'm trying to work on, as I have a tendency to just leave them "flat", no shading except maybe a wash.

Glad you like it... I painted this model a while ago and have been patiently waiting for it to be posted. The "jolly" crewmember is supposed to have his outstretched hand resting on the other edge of the machine (as in the artwork from evo.) Unfortunately the photo wasn't taken this way...

The metallics are rendered with fairly advanced technique.... here goes -

All "silver" areas..

basecoat - medium metal (Cold Steel)

Shade 1 - Thamar Black + lots of water. This is the tricky part.... you need to apply thin washes of the black exactly as you would shade NMM (non-metallic metal.) What I mean by this is that you need to pick an imaginary light source and shade the model as if it was being light by this source. For my figure I picked a spot above and to the right of the model. Looking at real metallic objects will help you understand how they reflect light. You need to replicate this effect on the figure. Gradually build up the washes of Thamar black in the deepest areas. You should now have a figure with shiny metallic highlights and nearly black, matte shadows. This is good.

Shade 2 - Mix 1:1:1 Thamar Black:Beaten Purple:Sanguine Base. Mix this with lots of water like you did above. This stage is subtle and could be left out. Apply this wash over the areas in shadow. This will lightly tint the metals purple. You want it so thin that it's hardly perceived. This stage helps pop the shadow areas from the gold sections.

Shade 3 - Thamar Black. In this stage line with pure black any areas that are in total shadow, like the bottoms of the metal plates etc.

Highlight 1 - medium metal (Cold Steel) use this reclaim any areas that may have gotten "over-shaded." Be careful not to get this in your expertly created shadows (having metallic flake in your shadow areas will ruin the effect).

Highlight 2 - bright metal (quick silver) use this sparingly on only the brightest bits (the parts that would catch to most light, like the rivets, the line down the center of the plate and the edges that face our "imaginary lightsource."

Add scratches as you would any other surface (use a tiny brush!)

Notes... Contrast is really important. The bright areas need to be BRIGHT. The shadows need to be DARK. The play of bright silver against black is what makes this technique pop! Most of your work is done in the "Shade 1" stage. After this stage the highlights should only be minimal. The gold areas were painted in exactly the same way but shaded down with Umbral Umber then Umbral Umber + Purple + Black. Highlights were created by adding Quicksilver to my Gold.

I finish the model of with a spray of dullcoat. I really like the way dullcoat pulls the figure together, others like having the metal areas as shiny as possible. A good solution for this is to paint the model just up until you are about to do your final metal highlights, then dullcoat. After this is dry apply the final highlights so they remain shiny.

Hope this helps. If you don't have a grasp on NMM this technique will be very difficult. If you want to read more about painting metals I recommend this article by Sebastian Archer (automaton on CMON) -

http://www.coolminiornot.com/article/aid/649

He is a fantastic artist.

- Q

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(Aliengod3 @ Feb 5 2008, 02:45 PM)
what exactly do you mean by blending and what is the two-brush blending technique?
This is a very common question and the answer is a bit involved. Simply put Blending is any technique that is meant to ease the transition between two layers of paint. Almost every mini painter practices blending in one form or another whether they know it or not. To demonstrate I will provide a list of the most common blending techniques in order of what I consider the easiest to more advanced techniques and try to describe some of the advantages of each.

Drybrushing-Yes thats right, drybrushing is infact a blending technique. The biggest advantage of drybrushing is that it is relatively fast and easy to learn and for this reason it is almost always the first technique that miniature painters learn. Smoother transitions can be achieved by applying numerous very light and subtle coats and adding alittle more of your highlight color to your paint mixture with each coat. Expertly drybrushed models can have upwards of 20-30 very light drybrushes although most have far fewer.

Layering-The definition of layering is a bit fuzzy but when layering is used in the context of blending it means to use very thin paint applied in numerous layers to build up your highlights or shading. Thin paint is very translucent and the layer underneath is tinted rather than covered. With multiple layers the paint is gradually built up. The translucency of the thin paint is the property that causes the layers to blend together. The more numerous the layers used the smoother the blend but the more numerous you layers are the thinner your paint needs to be. When layering, P3 mixing medium or othe matte mediums can be really useful because paint that is thined down a lot with water will run unless applied in very light coats. By mixing in P3 mixing medium as well as some water you can make your paint more translucent while preventing it from running. There are many styles of layering and most painters use thicker paint and fewer layers just to save time/sanity and although the transition between layers is more noticeable the effect is still quite striking especially on the table top.

Feathering-Feathering is using layers of thin paralelle lines to build up your highlights. Layers of lines are painted one within another to gradually build up highlights. Check out the head of the Legion Raek for an example of Feathered blending. Its a technique you don't see very often but it yields a very unique textured look while still blending your layers together. It is worth noting that there a some other techniques that are also called feathering so check out post #267 in this thread for a desciption of these.

Two-brush blending-As the name states you need two brushes to use this technique. One brush applies paint to the the model and the second is used to alter the translucency of the paint while it is still wet. Paint is quickly and messily applied in a line, dot, or glob with the first brush and then pushed or pulled into the desired shape using a second brush dampened with blending medium (blending medium is not the same thing as P3 mixing medium you can find blending medium in many art stores). There exsists a secret blending medium out there which just happens to be the very best but also a little dangerous/gross, yup you guessed it-saliva! If you do decide to brush lick and use saliva as your blending medium be careful that you are using non-toxic paint. P3 is non-toxic, but some other mini paints are. If your bottle doesn't say non-toxic on it chances are at least some paints from that range contain cadmium, cobalt, or other heavy metals that can lead to cancer and other health problems. In any case always avoid getting paint in your mouth. The good news is that slaiva is a natural resister which means that paint doesn't stick to it and you can most times blend away without getting paint on your blending brush. Two-brush blending allows a painter to make big jumps in color and still get the smoothest of blends this means fewer layers which results in a lot of time saved.

Wet Blending-One of the toughest techniques to do, wet blending is the mixing of two wet colors directly on the mini. It is easiest to do on large open areas. a blob/line of one color is placed on the model and then the brush is cleaned off and the second color is applied next to the first leaving some room in between then using a second brush is used to pull strands of each color into the space between them and mix them together until the transition is flawless. The end effect is like having a basecoat that changes gradually from one color to another.

I'm sure that there are many other blending techniques out there and other ways of doing the technique listed other than the way I've described but that just shows that art has infinite variation. I hope this gives people a overview of the possiblities of miniature painting and maybe even inspires some of you to try some of the techniques listed. Good luck, and Happy painting

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(Iron Runes @ Feb 12 2008, 11:06 AM)
I was painting up my Dirty Meg model, and it came to me that I had no idea on how to render the grease smears and stains she has on the official model.
Any hints or whatnot on placing and colors to use for that effect?
Thanks a lot!

I used two-brushes to achieve this effect but really anybody should be able to do it fairly easily. Make a mixture of armor wash and umbral umber and add some water until you get wash consitency. Then literally dab a blob of paint in the shape of the stain onto the finished surface of the apron. Then take a second brush that is only slightly damp (you don't want it to be bone dry only but dryer is better than not dry enough) and after waiting about 20-30 seconds place the tip of the second brush into the middle of the blob of paint. The brush should suck the paint up leaving a little stain of paint behind.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(Shroud @ Mar 4 2008, 12:06 PM)
I’m having some problems with the 2 brush blending. Any advice Matt?

1) Sometimes the paint seems to dry so fast I can barely smear it around. So instead of a smooth blend I get some streaks coming off the line

2) Sometimes I can pull it around but too much - before it thins out and blends in, it has already covered the whole surface of the armor (or whatever) plate I’m painting....


Thanks for the questions Shroud...
If your paint is drying too fast there are three reasons things that you may be doing wrong. 1) You can try moving faster, holding your blending brush in your mouth like a pirate holds a knife helps speed a lot especially if you're using "natural" blending medium . 2) Your paint may also have too much water in it. This causes the paint to bead up a bit creating a ball that is thick in the center and thin around the edges thus when you change brushes the outer edge dries leaving marks we like to call "bath tub rings". When blending through layering you often use very thin paint to get better blends so many people are used to thin "skim milk paint". With two-brush blending you want to aim for paint closer to "whole milk" or even "half and half" try adding only a single brush of water to the paint when you mix 3-4 brushes of paint to your pallet and see if that helps and if it doesn't keep experimenting with the paint consistency until you find what does. 3) You may be applying you paint like you would a normal layer, smooth and flat, this is not the best way though. Instead apply it very quickly and messily dot or dab (something with some three dimensionality to it) then quickly switch brushes and smooth the paint out to it is flat. Applying the paint in this fashion will cause it to dry slower since it has less surface area than if it were spread thin over the model but you must first have the paint consistency right. Once you start blending your medium should extend you drying time slightly so that you'll have plenty of time to move the paint around and get where you want it and as smooth as you can.

Whew! And that was just your first question

On to your second question... It sounds like you have an idea of how to pull paint but to you also need to learn how to push paint as well. Try doing the pull method only in reverse and it will give an idea of what is possible using this technique. These two methods are often used together first pulling the paint out over the model then pushing it back in to where you want it, maybe pulling it out some more then pushing it back. It takes some practice but is necessary for getting the paint where you want it. Here are two exercises than\t will help you learn to push paint. 1) find a deep crevice like the fold of a cloak apply a thick glob of paint along the length of the crevice to define a shadow then switch brushes and using the side of the brush push the paint back a ways into the crevice if it goes in to far you should be able to pull it back out and try again. Try pushing in a lateral direction (your brush meld at a 45degree angle in relation to the crevice) so you get the whole length of the fold in one slow stroke. You can also try using the tip of the brush (held at a 90 degree angle to the crevice) and swishing it back and forth as you move in towards the crevice. As you swish the brush gently let off pressure from your brush. This "swishing" action also works for when you are pulling paint. 2) When you are painting a warjack Try applying a thick swathe of paint along the edge of a plate you want to highlight and then use the side of your blending brush quickly push the paint towards the edge. Try to do it in one swift stroke that starts with lots of pressure and quickly lets up so that you brush leaves the mini entirely before it reaches the edge. Keep practicing these two actions until you are confident with your abilities. You can imagine paint pushing as using your blending brush as an eraser and I use it often to fix mistakes that I make before they dry just by pushing them into the shadows of the model where the are hardly noticeable or by pushing them off the edge of a surface and then washing them off the blending brush. This ability to erase is another way that two brushing saves you time no more having to go back and fix them latter!

I fear I may have given you guys too much information here. There is no way one could absorb all of this in one read or learn any of it without much practice but believe me once you start getting good blends all the hard work will be worth it.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(Fafel @ Feb 20 2008, 04:58 PM)
I would like to ask how Warmongers armor (bracers and other stuff) was painted. Was it made with metallic paints?
All the metal parts for the legion are painted in metalic paints. The formula looks like this:
Base: Radient Platnum
Wash: armor wash
Shade: thamar black+beaten purple+coal black
Highlight: quick silver

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(boerk @ Mar 9 2008, 03:05 PM)
With the pushing and pulling, what shape brush is doing the work? My logic is saying a bright or flat because of the width and that they have an actual "side," but rounds seem more common in mini painting and "side" could refer to using the hairs rather than the point.

Would it be safe to say that two brush blending is comparable to the "traditional" art idea of using a palette knife to plop a color onto the work surface and manipulating it with a brush possibly going into wet and wet blending?

Excellent question... You should use a round brush and it should be fairly large try a W&N 7 or Raphael brand brush size 2 or 3. The large work brush from P3 is also a very good low cost alternative and the difference is negligable. I haven't tried other shapes but I think they may be harder to use because they have a bit less "spring" the bright could be worth trying though. Also when I refer to using the "side" of the brush I am indeed referring to using the length of a round brush rather than he tip. The answer to your second question is a resounding yes on all counts although of course you have to work alot faster due to the minute scale.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(C24 @ Mar 30 2008, 07:55 PM)
'Ello!

I have a slight question about washes. I will sometimes try them and get very nice, smooth shading with barely any effort, but others just get awful "pool lines". What am I doing wrong/ what can I do to ensure consistency in my paint washes? I would be obliged if someone could answer this.
This is a common problem and there are afew things that you can do that will help you avoid those unsightly lines. The lines are usually caused when a wash is applied too heavily to an area and allowed to pool. Try to apply less wash with each coat and apply multiple layers if the desired shading is not achieved with the first coat. You should also try adding less water and a little mixing medium to your wash. This will give your wash more "body" and should help as well.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(TheThan @ Apr 17 2008, 04:13 PM)
Hi everyone, new member here.

Anyway I’ve been painting my brand new (and quite nifty) High Executioner Servath Reznik and I have hit a bit of a snag.

I’m looking at painting his scroll and I'm stumped. How did you guys paint it?

To paint the scroll on Reznik I used a special technique that requires the use of mixing medium to change the translucency of the paint. Here is how it works: first basecoat the scroll with 'jack bone mixed with moldy ochre and rucksack tan for a yellowed appearance. Then paint your writing and whatever other designs on the scroll using thamar black. If you mess up it should be easy to fix errors or start over since there are no highlights or shades. Once your freehand work is complete you'll want to mix up a shade of bloodtracker brown and lots of mixing medium and apply some shading. Umbral Umber was added for subsequent shades. The mixing medium should give your paint a translucency that will allow the writing to show through. A similar technique was used for the fur on the Gnarlhorn Satyr and Bloody Bradigan's tatoos.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(swisherteets @ May 8 2008, 09:25 PM)
thanks for so much great help guys. I have finally prefected reds and yellows now thanks to your guys help here

the next color question i have is greens. they havent been to much of a pain but i have yet to get a green that i like for my bane thrall cloaks and goreshade. Now with the epic goreshade pics up i really like the green that is painted on his cloak and was curious about the formula for that and also the formula used to paint his main shoulder armor as it looks to my eyes at least to have some green in it too but i cant tell i might be just goin crazy.

thanks again

When painting some of the epic models I tend to do a lot of experimentation methods and mixes that I never intend to replicate for the rest of the cryx range. Epic Goreshade is one of those models. So unfortunately I don't have exact formulas written down for his cloak and armor but I can describe for you the process and concept I used when painting them. For the green cloth I started with a very blue green. Coal black, exile blue, and meridius blue were mixed with gnarls green until I found the blue green that I liked. Purple tones were added to the base color for the shade steps. This use of purple gives the color some interesting tonal qualities. Yellow tones and MWH were added to the base color for the highlight stages and I made sure to exaggerate the highlights since for the last stage I used some very thin glazes of green ink to unify the colors. This glaze step is often necessary when adding contrasting tone (yellow and purple in this case) to increase contrast and adding tonal qualities.

The armor on Goreshade started with CXH and was shaded down to black from there. Alternateing shades of green and purple were used along with the normal cryx colors and matte medium to gradually shade the armor. This is all relatively advanced color theory stuff but at the very least I hope that it is interesting to read and if it inspires some of you to expirament more with color mixing and theory I'll feel like my job is done

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(FrigginCaller @ May 22 2008, 11:32 AM)
Ok. The new Epic Madrak has just posted on the main site and I have to know what colors were used on his armor. The method used to paint it would be great too.

Colors used on his skin would be a even greater bonus!! As if you guy's have nothing better to do.

Figured all this stuff is still fresh on the ol' noggin.
For Madrak's armor I started by basing in cold steel. Then I started shading using the two-brush technique and started with rusty colors first was bloodstone. Then I shaded with battledress green followed by brown ink with mixing medium added for body. Then since I didn't want the armor to be too warm I glazed with a couple thin layers of blue ink. I gave the armor some final edge highlights with quicksilver and called it done. The skin was painted in a very complex manner that I didn't bother recording. I started with a base coat MWH and shaded down from there. There were many turquoise and purple tones added in and I feel the overall effect looked quite nice.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(paintmuncher @ May 23 2008, 10:55 AM)
When you get the time I would love to know what paints you used for the Wroughthammer Rockram.
I have been asked to paint it as is on the box and I really wish to avoid removing the paint from this
little puppy again because the perfectionist in me is not happy.

The Rockham was painted in standard rhulic fashion. The colors you'll want to pick up are guncorp brown, hammerfall khaki, battlefield brown, Menoth white highlight, and bastion grey. For the khaki areas start with a base of hammerfall and highlight by adding MWH. Shade the khaki with bastion grey and battlefield brown. For the darker brown areas start with a base of guncorp and highlight by adding hammerfall. shade with battlefiled brown mixed with thamar black. Then you'll have to add the rust and paint chips to get it really looking like the studio version. Good luck and if you need some more tips let me know.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(zero1 @ Jun 23 2008, 12:17 PM)
Any suggestions for getting that "denim" look, IE. Gudrun's pants, Kraye's pants (under chaps), and similar to Laddermore's cloak. Any help would be appreciated.

The base denim mixture I'm come up with goes something like this: trollblood base, exile blue, greatcoat grey. Equal parts of each paint. From there adding underbelly blue will give a good highlight color and mixing in either battlefield brown (for dirty pants) or more exile and some black or armor wash (for a cleaner blue) should work. try some expiriments with replacing exile with cugnar blue base or greatcoat with ironhull for some variation if you like.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(bennythejew @ Jun 29 2008, 11:03 AM)
I need to know what size bits should I get for my pin vise? Also, does it matter if they're plain steel, or diamond- or titanium-coated?
The new P3 pin vise comes with .85mm which we here in the studio have found is the most useful size. Also we are offering three other sizes that will be availible in small packs of brass and bits. The other sizes are .50mm for really tiny stuff. 1.25mm for those heavy joins on warjacks and beasts. 1.90mm for those who want to replace spear hafts or really reinforce their gaming models. Superior bit diamond coat/titanium make a noticeable difference but also cost significantly more.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(ScullySlam @ Jul 30 2008, 07:13 AM)
I would love to know how those fantastic beach bases were made also!

The beach bases are pretty quick once you get the hang of it...

Here's what I did.

1- Clip the base tab off your mini. I then drill a small hole in one foot and glue in a short piece of rod. To paint figures I typically use a pin vice as a "holder." I just insert the small rod from his foot into the pin vice and tighten it down. It makes a great handle to grab on while painting.

2- Carefully cut the center out of your base. Warning, this step is boring! Once finished, you should be left with a plastic ring. Sometimes I file the inside to smooth out any rough cuts.

3- mix up some putty "greenstuff" or otherwise. smoosh a ball of it onto some plastic-card.

4- Put your cut base ring over it and using a sculpting tool press the putty so it fills the ring, leaving a big depression in the center. I use a rubber clay shaper to do this.

5- sculpt the putty so that it looks like an ocean bottom. While the putty is still wet stick some rocks or wood or mini-crabs into it. lump up some putty where your figure will stand.

6- Wet the feet of your figure and press it into the base so that it makes a depression in the putty. You want it to look like the model is sinking into the sand a bit. Pull the figure out and set it aside. Let the base dry.

7- Once the putty is totally dry it should pop off the plastic. I then paint some thinned down glue in the ONLY the deeper areas and cracks (but not where you figures feet go!!). Dip the base in sand. Let the glue dry. Scrape off any sand that isn't looking good.

8 - Prime the base white. Multiple times! You want it to be really white!

9 - Mix up 3 washes all at once. The first wash is Menoth white base + water + lots of Matte Medium. The second is Beast Hide + water + lots of Matte Medium. The third is Battlefield Brown + water + lots of Matte Medium.

10 - Apply the first wash rather heavily to the entire base (excluding the outer ring.) You want it to go into all the cracks and crevices. The raised areas should still have white primer showing through. While the first wash is still wet apply the second wash to the deeper areas. It will natureally blend out as everything is still wet. Do the same with the third wash only on smaller, deeper area. The effect should be quite subtle, not overboard. Let everything dry.

11- Paint any details that you may have stuck into the putty (rocks, wood, fingernails...)

12 - Paint the outer rim of the base black. Paint the figure that goes onto the base.

13 - Attach figure to base with glue.

14 - Spray figure and base with sealant, if you use sealant.... (make sure you do this prior to adding the water!)

15 - Now it's water time....

16 - Mix up some water ( I use a two part epoxy called "envirotex" I bought it at a train shop and think it's great) I add less than one drop of P3 turquoise ink to give the water a slight tint.

17- Using an old brush I slowly fill up the depression in the base with "water." Brush by brush, trying not to spill any on the figure or the outer rim of the base. Really boring as well. If anyone comes up with a better way of doing this please let me know.

18 - Set the mini on something flat and let it dry. After about 10 mins exhale repeatedly on the water. This will pop any small bubbles. It's the ocean so some bubbles look nice! It should take about a day to dry.

Presto... 18 steps later and your done. yikes!


enjoy.

- Q

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE(molejo @ Jul 14 2008, 11:24 AM)
Hi there studio guys !
I recently bought both Doc Killingsworth and Gudrun the Wanderer, and I want to paint their liquer bottles the same way as PP did
the problem, I've got no idea which colors to use to achive that green glass look
It's obviously not plain green, but what is it ?
thanks a lot !

Well both of those models were painted by Quintin but I could tell you how I went about getting the colors for the green glass of Bloody Bradigan's bottle. The blue green color is pretty easy to mix just get a good base color by mixing meridius blue with gnarls green. Mix in coal black followed by thamar black for the shading. Its good to get good and dark shading and bright crisp highlights when painting glass since this high contrast adds to the glassy look. Mixing iosan green, arcane blue, and menoth white highlight in with you base color will yield good highlight tones try to get very extreme and sharp with the highlights almost reaching white. Hope that works for you

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (ApocalypseRAT @ Nov 11 2008, 10:58 PM)
Dear Quentin,

In NoQuarter #17-20 in studio showdown, your conversions to the privateer army are wonderful! I said to myself, THATs the army for me! Now when I read the studio showdown articles I rooted for you till the end, and loved your army list. You told us how to paint that wonderful force and now my question is: how did you do all those conversions? They're really very good ones. I can detect some things here and there, but others I'm stumped on, being I can't see them up close or the backs of them. Like the widened legs of the jacks, or the diversbell helm for Bart and Shae. OH and the Buccaneer's Net, you gotta tell me how you did that it's fricken awesome! And all the other conversions to the pirates and jacks, as well as Jonne's walrus face I just love it! Thanks you're the best!

-ApocalypseRAT


Hello!

Sorry for the delayed response.. As I'm no longer studio-painting for PP, I'm not on the boards quite as much.

Glad you liked the pirates, especially if they help inspire your project!

I'll try to remember all the pieces that went into my figs (some times it was just picking random stuff out of a bits box... hmmm)

All the jacks had "hip surgery." I feel that they typically look a bit better with a wider stance and more animated pose on the legs. This was done rather quickly and was not a "neat" conversion but as the hips are in fairly hidden area they do need to be perfect. To accomplish this conversion I drill holes for a thick pin (really big paper-clip) between the body and leg. The lenght of this pin sets the new hip width. Unlike typical pinning, you want your paper-clip piece to be long enough to create this space. The pin has to be very secure as it will be supporting the majority of weight at the joint. Prior to gluing I test assemble the legs and make sure I like the new width, at this point I can bend the pins around to adjust the position of the legs. Once you are happy with the position, glue the legs/pins/body together. Now you have to hide the pins! I did this by cutting little rings off of the plastic tubes that go over the tip of a new paintbrush. I had a number of different sizes of these tubes laying around, so I was able to find two of them that would slide together creating the look of a piston. I cut small rings from these tubes and made a slit in the bottom of each ring so that I could slide it over the pins. I then liberally applied superglue to all of it (I really globbed it on.) Once it was painted it looked fine. If you look at pictures of my figures this might make a bit more sense?

Buccaneer = Got a new head. The visor from Durgen was use to create the central part of the face mask. I drilled through the mask with a dremmel and it just happened to leave a nice raised ring around the hole (happy accident.) I then put a piece of plasticcard behind the hole to create the "eye." I sculpted a rounded ball of putty and stuck the visor into the ball. This putty then became the back half of his head. I sculpted a couple of small hinges on the top and bottom where it meets the body. I carefully clipped away the old net and replaced it with a piece of bent metal mesh. I formed it into the right shape and glued it to that hand with lots of glue! I then sculpted the little weights on the end of it with putty.

Mariner = Got the vanguard head. (clipping off the mariners head SUCKS! be warned...) I then used a vanguard or cygnar jack arm? to attach the clipped off cannon to. I sculpted straps around the cannon and arm with putty.

Vanguard = Got the mariner head. I built a new neck around his head with the bottom of two khador shields.

Mule = He's got a mule body and arms. Freebooter legs and head. The gun has been recreated using his old boiler and the stock wooden barrel. I prefer this gun to the stock version as it looks less comical. His new, replacement boiler has parts from a man-o-war, durgen, and a khador shield. Lots of glue and pinning was needed to pull this one off....

Bart = Bart with his head carefully removed (not fun either.) His mask was cut from on of the revenant pirates. I had to create a new front for his diving mask, this was done with a thin ring of plastic and some putty. The air tube coming out of his head is a guitar string. I used putty to sculpt new clothing/straps/buckles where the helmet attached the body.

Shae = Same deal as bart. This time I used a helmet from one of the mind slaves. I also cut down the bottom of skarre's base and used it for Shae.

Jonne's face was sculpted from a photo of a walrus. He had toothpick teeth. I didn't get to spend much time painting him... oh well. bummer.

Herne is a combo of Rockbotom and Herne with Montador's hat. I sculpted a bandana where the hat met the head to hide the gaps.


I think that covers most of the figures in my army.

Hope this helps you out. I had a lot of fun chopping all these suckers up!

- Q

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (FrigginCaller @ Aug 8 2008, 02:30 PM)
Seeing the new Kilt Lifter Troll gives me a big smile

Beer suds? How'd you do em? Also, colors used on the kilt would be very nice.

Base-MWB
Wash-bloodtracker brown+MM
Glaze-Ember orange
Highlight-MWB
Highlight-MWH

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (FrigginCaller @ Aug 13 2008, 07:10 AM)
Colors used on the Swamp Gobbers flesh? Thanks!

This is just a guess since they were painted by Ali but at least its a place to start

Base-thornwood+battle dress
Shade-CXB+Sanguine base
Highlight-Khardic flesh+base color
Highlight-Midlund flesh+previous
Add spots of of thornwood

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (FrigginCaller @ Sep 22 2008, 02:23 PM)
What colors where used on the Stone Scribe Elders scroll cases?
base-brass balls
shade-brown ink+CXB
Shade-add coal black
highlight-brass balls
highlight-radient platinum

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (Bearded Dragon @ Oct 28 2008, 08:06 AM)
I'm interested in epic Eiryss' base. What was used for the gargoyle's granite and what for the bricks?

For the Granite:
Base-bastion grey
spatter-MWH and thamar black
Shade-greatcoat grey+CXB+MM
Highlight-TBH+MM

Bricks:
Base-skorne red+Khardic flesh
glaze-various bricks were glazed either exile blue or khardic flesh
Shade-Umbral umber+Sanguine base
Highlight-Skorne red+Khardic flesh

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (zero1 @ Jan 25 2009, 10:37 AM)
Thanks for that burst of knowledge Matt, its helped with a couple of projects i have on the go, especially the metamorphosis style red leather on the trolls that was a bit of a treat, if unlabeled, because i finally realize how you did the smooth worn leather on things like gudrun.

one new question when you have a moment. The newer style metals? how to? i know you explained the new troll bronze but on all the new figures i am stunned by how good the steel and brown golds look. they're similar to the legions artillery with a strong forced highlight but every time i try to copy the style it comes out muddy and undefined. any tips, pointers, alchemical paint mixtures you could share would be a big help. Thanks.
Well one thing I've been doing is mixing some paint and inks in with my metalic base coats. This helps metalics get better coverage but cuts down the shine of the metal. Once I shade the metal I'll highlight with pure metalic paint to add the shine back in as a highlight. The forced highlight technique is similiar to the technique used for NMM. It works well for angular obejects like swords and blocky amor plates. Try to break the object up into individual surfaces or faces. The easiest objects to paint in the forced highlight tech are those that are split down the middle into two equal halves such as a double edged sword or the front plate of the scather catapult. Choose one of these faces to be faceing the light and apply your shadows and highlights. THen the other side will essentially be painted in the same way only reverse. The idea is that this other face is not in the light and would be except of light that is reflected from the ground and surroundings thus the highlight that is palced on the undersides instead of the tops. I hope that makes sense, it's had to explain in just words maybe a article could be written in the future

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (ArchonXVI @ Feb 26 2009, 04:58 PM)
Out of curiousity, what do you use for the Skorne blacks on EMakeda?

Skorne black is painted like so:
Base:coal black+thamar black
Highlight:add hammerfall khaki to base
Highlight: add more khaki.

Pretty simple eh?

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (Asdrubael @ Apr 5 2009, 02:18 PM)
Heya. I was wondering how you guys paint the olive-greenish fabrics on the eKrueger model. I've tried many variations on my own but I cannot figure out what base, washes, and highlights you use. Thanks. Also, what color progression do you guys use for the stone portions of woldwardens?

hmmmm....I think eKrueger went something like this:
Base: ordic olive+CXB
Shade: base+umbral umber
Shade: previous+coal black
Highlight: Base+wurm green
Highlight: previous+thrall flesh

For the wold constructs I've painted this is the progression I used:
Base:bastion grey
Spatter:TBH
Shade:greatcoat grey
shade: greatcoat+battlefield+coal
Highlight:TBH
Highlight:TBH+MWH

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (FrigginCaller @ Apr 20 2009, 08:50 PM)
Whats the "Juicing method"?

Juicing is another method for blending. Like most other methods of blending the idea is to apply a gradient in opacity. Whoever came up with the juicing method noticed that their paint was thicker at the end of their brush stroke than at the beginning and this is the basic idea behind the juicing method. Load your brush up with thin paint and remove most of the paint from the brush with a cloth, then apply the paint using quick delicate brush strokes. Sometimes a blemish of paint will be left behind at the beginning of the brush stroke that needs to be repaired quickly before the paint dries so many juicers suck the paint out of their brush and quickly wipe this part clean thus earning the title "paint munchers". Some things that will help you get the hang of this method is to use thin paint and a small brush. I like to use this method to shade metallic paint but many skilled painters use it for all of their blending.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (FrigginCaller @ Apr 20 2009, 08:50 PM)
Whats the "Juicing method"?

Juicing is another method for blending. Like most other methods of blending the idea is to apply a gradient in opacity. Whoever came up with the juicing method noticed that their paint was thicker at the end of their brush stroke than at the beginning and this is the basic idea behind the juicing method. Load your brush up with thin paint and remove most of the paint from the brush with a cloth, then apply the paint using quick delicate brush strokes. Sometimes a blemish of paint will be left behind at the beginning of the brush stroke that needs to be repaired quickly before the paint dries so many juicers suck the paint out of their brush and quickly wipe this part clean thus earning the title "paint munchers". Some things that will help you get the hang of this method is to use thin paint and a small brush. I like to use this method to shade metallic paint but many skilled painters use it for all of their blending.

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (Wargame_junkie @ Jun 9 2009, 01:58 PM)
For some reason my image is missing from my last question and I think thats why it wasnt answered. How did you paint the rust on Horthol?

So, rusted troll armor:
dry brush: cold steel
shade: bloodtracker+MM
Shade: bloodstone+umber+MM
edge HL: quicksilver
Wash: brown ink+ dot of thamar black

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (Melo @ Jul 27 2009, 11:45 PM)
Fennblades: How did you make the red-brown colour used on the Fenblades' belts and sword handle (the leather one on the blade).

Ok, here it is...
Base: idrian flesh
Shade: battlefield brown+brown ink
Shade: brown ink+dot of thamar black
Highlight: bootstrap brown

[PPS_Matt DiPietro]

QUOTE (FrigginCaller @ Aug 12 2009, 08:12 AM)
Albino flesh on the Runeshapers please!

The actual method used was probably a bit more involved than this so feel free to experiment. Here is a overview:
Base: TBH+underbelly
Glaze: murderous magenta on face/lips/knuckles
Shade: base+carnal pink
Shade: add greatcoat+dot of midlund
Shade: add dot of coal black
highlight: base+morrow+MM
Highlight:morrow+MM

[PG_ApocalypseRAT]

Hi all looks like im the first one to post on the new ask the studio!!!!!

So to my question...Ive been working on my searforge army scheme for a bit now but i really like the Avalanchers scheme...how do you go about painting it? bc it looks great

Also i wanted to say thanks to matt personally for doing a great job on the new ask the studio MKII. let give a BIG thumbs up!

[PG_Golfballfred]

The new Khador sniper looks great. What colors/techniques were used on his coat?